Mean Machine Read online

  Plus, I wanted to hear her voice again.

  “I can. Handle it, I mean.”

  She held up her keychain. Pepper spray. I looked at her eyes quickly, seeing something there I didn’t like.

  She had seen trouble before, without a doubt.

  “You run into a problem out there? Somebody messing with you?”

  She shrugged.

  “No. Just working late shifts. I’ve had a few close calls.”

  It chilled my blood, the thought of someone trying to hurt this beautiful girl. It really did.

  “I hope you don’t think that’s enough to protect you if someone really wants to hurt you.”

  I sounded like her father. Or a cop, for God’s sake. I was seriously fucking furious that someone had bothered this beautiful, delicate looking girl.

  She smiled and I inhaled, holding my breath. It felt like the sun came out. My office wasn’t dark anymore. The day wasn’t overcast anymore outside the window behind me.

  Or at least, it felt that way.

  “I know. I always ran. But I had this ready just in case.”

  “Good.”

  I made the decision without thinking. I just opened my mouth and the words came out.

  “Pay is eight bucks an hour, plus tips. You keep all of those. We are short staffed so you can work as much as you want. We’ll feed you, one meal per shift. And you can take a fifteen minute break every couple of hours, as long as it’s not super busy. Sound good?”

  “Yes. Sounds great.”

  “You just need to fill out some paperwork and we’ll get you in the payroll system. Do you have photo ID?”

  She nodded eagerly and fished in her bag for her wallet. I felt my gut turn over when she pulled it out. A popular cartoon character was printed on the front.

  She was a kid. Just a kid.

  So why was I fantasizing about pulling her onto the desk and having my way with her?

  She was holding her ID out to me expectantly, I realized. I glanced at the card, clocking her age. Mid-twenties, thank God.

  I might be acting like a lech, but at least I wasn’t a dirty old man.

  “I just need to make a copy of this.”

  She nodded, looking so relieved that I almost cried. She must be in dire straights. I glanced at her shoes on the way out of the office to the copy machine in the hallway.

  Yep. Just as I thought. They were lace up booties, scuffed up like crazy. The girl was on hard times. But she had pulled herself together nicely, all the same.

  I made a photocopy of her ID for her file, then hit the button and made another. This one I folded up and put in my pocket. I couldn’t have told you why I did that though.

  “Here you go.”

  I handed her back her ID, then pulled a t-shirt from a box in the corner.

  “Is small okay?”

  She nodded, clutching the t-shirt against her like it was a baby. I frowned again, deciding I was going to get to the bottom of who this girl was, and what was going on with her.

  “So, when can you start?”

  A huge smile lit up her face. It hit me like a punch to the gut. My chest felt like it cracked open, but it didn’t hurt. It felt fucking amazing.

  Her beauty literally overwhelmed me.

  I realized in that moment I had made a very big mistake. Huge. Monumental.

  “Right now, if that’s okay. I just need to run out to my car.”

  I nodded and she was off like a shot. I blinked a few times once she was gone. Then I reached for the bottle of bourbon I kept on my desk and poured myself a drink. I had a feeling I was going to need it.

  “Mason, you are a bona fide idiot.”

  Chapter Two

  Michelle

  I scurried out to the car, simultaneously worried and elated. This was it. I had gotten the job.

  We were actually going to eat tonight. Not one cup of soup to last the whole day. Real food.

  “Paton, honey, guess what?”

  My daughter sat up from the back seat where she was reading a book. She loved reading. And as soon as we could afford a place, the first thing we were doing was getting her a library card.

  Her shiny, strawberry blond hair was mussed. I reached out to rumple it even more.

  “You got it?”

  “I got it!”

  She squealed and bounced up and down on the seat. I noticed she was eating crackers from a diner we’d been to a few days ago. We’d gotten soup and stuffed the crackers in our pockets.

  We were in survival mode.

  I tried not to think about that. About what a bad mother I was. About how brave she was being.

  How brave she had to be.

  “I start right now, and guess what?”

  “What?”

  “They are going to feed us.”

  Her eyes got huge as I slid in beside her, pulling off my jacket and slipping into the new shirt. It was black with a cute graphic that matched the neon sign out front.

  “Now. I won’t get my break for a while. I haven’t read the menu yet but I’m thinking they have burgers for sure.”

  She handed me back my jacket.

  “No, you keep this. It’s cold out here. I wish…”

  “Stop it, mom. It’s not your fault. I will be fine.”

  “No matter how cold it gets, you got to keep the window open. Get out and do jumping jacks. No radio. Okay?”

  She nodded. I swear, she was nine going on forty some days. My precious, strong, brilliant girl.

  “Everything is going to be okay, isn’t it mom?”

  I nodded, brushing her hair away from her face. Her nose was cold so I rubbed mine against it. She giggled and laid back in her cocoon of blankets, pulling my jacket over top of her.

  “Maybe I’ll make enough for a room.”

  “That would be amazing. I’m so proud of you mom.”

  I tucked my purse on the floor, swiping on some lipgloss and shoving my phone and gloss into my jeans pocket.

  “How do I look?”

  “Like a fallen angel.”

  I laughed, blinking back sudden tears.

  We were going to get through this.

  We had to.

  Chapter Three

  Mason

  I stared out the one way mirror into the bar. The new girl was down there. And she was motoring.

  I watched her working. I had been for hours, all the while getting slowly and progressively more shitfaced.

  She was a hard worker, I’d give her that. She didn’t seem the type to flirt or court confrontation. She was evading all the men who looked at her.

  And they were all looking at her.

  Especially me.

  She was the first woman who’d caught my attention in years. Not just years either. Almost a damn decade.

  Fucking perfect.

  She was beautiful. Not just a little bit beautiful, either. She was exceptionally beautiful.

  Never mind the stunning figure that was sinfully wrapped in the t-shirt and jeans she wore. The apron showed off how trim her waist was. I rubbed my jaw, almost wishing she’d kept her ratty coat on.

  The woman had curves that wouldn’t quit. But it was her face that had my mind spinning. Those huge golden green eyes of hers should be illegal. Her pillow lips looked like they were made for kissing, and other, more intimate activities. Her cute little upturned nose made her look slightly mischievous and her chin was just a little bit too determined.

  But the way it all worked together… it was magical.

  I stared at her, taking it all in. Her dark reddish hair was pulled back in a ponytail, giving me a perfect view of her profile as she bent over a table. She was utterly focused on what she was doing.

  Jesus, the woman really looked like an angel!

  I was in trouble. I knew it without a doubt. I hadn’t noticed a woman in so long I’d forgotten how it felt. And I wasn’t just noticing little Miss Michelle.

  I was drooling. A wild animal clawing at the bars of his cage
. A fucking beast who wanted to toss her over my shoulder and carry her back to my cave.

  I forced myself away from the one way mirror. It was there to watch for trouble when I was upstairs but right now? I felt like a creep. Usually women threw themselves at me in droves, but this girl hadn’t so much as flirted with me. Not even when she was trying to land a job.

  Meanwhile here I was, watching her work and having impure thoughts.

  Very, very impure thoughts.

  I paced around the office a few times and threw back another glass of bourbon. It was busy down there, and it was hours to closing.

  I should go home and sleep it off, but I couldn’t leave without paying the girl. She’d looked hungry. Down on her luck. And I’d noticed that even while being completely distracted by my cock waking up after a ten year hibernation.

  This girl… she was like the damn Spring, waking up things that would be better off asleep! Still, I felt protective over her too. Had from the get-go. I wanted to make sure she ate.

  I decided it was time for her break and stomped down the stairs.

  Chapter Four

  Michelle

  “What do you want?”

  I whipped my head around, nearly crashing into Mason. The man moved like a cat! I hadn’t heard him sneak up behind me where I was restocking the sides outside the kitchen window.

  “Huh?”

  “You’ve been on for hours already, you must be getting hungry.” He stared at me, a stern look on his handsome face. “If you work a double you can have two meals you know. Or a meal and a snack.”

  “Oh. Thank you.”

  “Well?”

  I chewed my lip. I had already checked on Paton twice, even sneaking her out some dinner rolls and butter. I should tell him I’d taken some.

  “I had a few rolls.”

  “That’s not even a snack. Come on, tell me what you want and I’ll make it myself. You can eat in my office if it’s too busy down here.”

  My eyes got wide.

  “I’d rather eat in my car. If that’s okay.”

  He looked almost disappointed.

  “That’s silly, we have open tables in the back. My office is clean and quiet if you want to get away from the customers.”

  “It’s okay. I want to check my phone and a few things and it’s all out there.”

  He stared at me.

  “Okay, but the parking lot isn’t always the safest spot. Where are you parked?”

  “All the way in the back.”

  His frown deepened. My stomach got all tight and rumbly. If he found out I had a kid back there, he would think I was a horrible person. For some reason, I didn’t want Mason to think that about me.

  Or worse. He could fire me.

  “I’ll turn the lights on. Go ahead and order from Shorty.”

  I nodded, watching him disappear back into his office. It would have been a nice place to eat actually. He had heavy old wooded furniture, and a couple of nice chairs. There was even an old leather couch that looked cozy.

  If I knew him better, I would have asked if Paton could sit up there. At least it wasn’t really cold out yet. I’d make sure we had a place before that happened.

  Not that Paton ever complained about being cold or hungry, but it was eating me up inside. I’d had Paton so young. Sixteen years old and still so innocent. My parents had kicked me out when they found out I was pregnant.

  I’d been scraping by on odd jobs ever since, moving on when the work dried up. Or when someone got too pushy with me. Unfortunately, that happened a lot.

  Someday we’d be settled. Someday we would be safe. I swore it to myself for the hundredth time today. I swore it to God.

  Paton deserved it. She deserved everything.

  “What you want, girl?”

  Shorty was a big guy. He should be intimidating. But he was a softy. He’d already made me feel at home.

  “I guess a cheeseburger? A side of steamed veggies?”

  I knew she loved stuffed potatoes but I wanted the healthiest food I could get. And the most filling. So veggies it was.

  “You got it.”

  I smiled and headed back to the floor to check my tables. I wanted everyone taken care of before I took my break. I snagged a menu for Paton to look over so we could pick something out together for tomorrow. She’d love that.

  And, thanks to my tips we were definitely going to be able to get a motel room tonight. The crowd was kind of rough but they tipped well. Probably because the clientele were mostly men. But I was grateful, even if the money came with leering looks.

  We were okay. No more car sleeping. We’d get a hot shower and a good night’s sleep.

  Maybe they’d even have a coffee machine in the room with those pre-made sachets. The Jar didn’t open till eleven, so I knew I could get food during my double shift too. And two meals, at least.

  Plenty for Paton to fill up on. I’d even take a few bites myself.

  I asked Jaken for a can of Coke and tucked it into my apron. By the time I got back, the food was ready. Shorty gave me a little styrofoam cup on the side.

  “Mason’s famous chili. See if you like it.”

  I sniffed it and grinned.

  It smelled amazing.

  I hurried out to the car to eat with Paton.

  Chapter Five

  Mason

  I stared at my phone, rubbing my eyes. I’d tossed and turned all night. Not because I was thinking about Michelle. Because I was trying not to think about her and failing.

  Once I gave in and let my mind wander, I’d finally fallen asleep.

  I was still in bed, even though it was late morning. I was a night owl because of the bar so I was a bit of a vampire. But I wasn’t even sleeping. The truth was, I had two cats sitting on me, and I hated to disturb them.

  The phone beeped again.

  Morey lifted his head and glared at me.

  “Sorry, Your Highness.”

  I was getting text after text, rapid fire. All from Cassandra. I didn’t feel like texting so I called her instead.

  “Hey Cass. What’s up?”

  “Mason! Oh thank God. Where have you been?”

  “We were open late last night.”

  She fell silent.

  “You okay, kid?”

  “I think so?”

  “What is it? Is my Goddaughter okay?”

  “She’s fine. It’s Connor.”

  “What about him?”

  “He’s been distant lately. Staying out all hours.”

  I sighed. Cass was pregnant again. It made her paranoid.

  And as much as I hated to admit it, Connor worshipped her. There was no way he was stepping out on her. He was probably just working a case.

  “Come on, Cass. Do you really think that man would cheat on you?”

  I could almost hear her pouting on the other end of the line.

  “No…”

  “And?”

  “He knows you would chop him up and barbecue him if he did.”

  “Exactly. The man loves you. He has never been much of a ladies man, even before you.”

  “Hmmmff.”

  I chuckled, imagining her with her big belly and an obstinate look on her face.

  “Do you want to have lunch?”

  She perked up immediately. No one loved food as much as Cass.

  “Today?”

  “Yeah, come by the joint later.”

  “Are you sure this isn’t an attempt to get me to pick up a shift?”

  “No, Cass. I hired someone last night. She’s taking every shift she can.”

  “Oh, really? Is she in love with you yet?”

  I tried to imagine what that would look like. Michelle making eyes at me. Michelle bringing me drinks and snacks I didn’t ask for. Her dropping her pencil and bending over slowly to get my attention.

  For once in my life, I actually found that idea appealing.

  “No. She’s not like that.”

  “Like what?”

>   “She’s not frivolous.”

  “Ohhhh.”

  I could hear the smile in her voice. I scowled in response.

  “What does that mean?”

  “Nothing. I’ll see you at one.”

  “Drive safe.”

  She hung up and I sighed. It was time to extricate myself from the small, warm, somewhat dangerous creatures draped all over me. They did this every year when it started getting cold outside. But I knew they would forgive me when I opened their food can.

  “Sorry guys.”

  They both gave me dirty looks but were soon trotting after me to the kitchen, where another hungry mouth was waiting. I’d walked the dog at six AM, like usual. But I’d crawled back into bed after giving everyone a little food. My animals were spoiled, with at least four meals a day.

  Some of them homemade.

  Scrambled eggs in particular were a favorite. But I mixed it with a little chicken liver or steak. It was extra work but it was good for them. I loved the furry little bastards and they knew it.

  They coiled around my legs as I prepped another meal.

  A half an hour later everyone was walked, petted and fed. I was clean and showered. I’d even trimmed my beard and put some of that gooey styling stuff Cass got me in my hair. I held a shirt up against my chest. I could go with the typical black t-shirt under my leather jacket, or with a button down… I had a few, even a couple of flannels.

  This was embarrassing. I was a grown man. I frowned, deciding to blame Cass for this situation. She had bought me too many shirts.

  If I didn’t have all these options I wouldn’t be worried about what to wear like a teenage girl.

  Not even a teen.

  I felt like an insecure pre-teen!

  I scowled and went for the t-shirt option. My only concession was I wore one of my favorite ones. It was a soft black cotton, perfectly worn it with the club emblem emblazoned on it.

  Even though there was no way in hell I was going to pursue a girl who worked for me, I did not want to look like a chump in front of her. And this way, my cards were on the table. There would be no doubt about who and what I was.